Inside The Red Sox

Red Sox Slugger Hits Clutch Home Run In World Baseball Classic Win

Boston will need to rely on their new acquisition this summer

Scott Neville

Red Sox Slugger Hits Clutch Home Run In World Baseball Classic Win
Red Sox Slugger Hits Clutch Home Run In World Baseball Classic Win /
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The Boston Red Sox made somewhat of a surprising move when they re-signed a depth shortstop from last year's roster instead of making a bigger splash in free agency.

With Elvis Andrus, Josh Harrison and José Iglesias all available, the Red Sox turned to Yu Chang to fill out one of their last spots on the 40-man roster. 

The 27-year-old is now a key member of the Chinese Taipei roster in the World Baseball Classic and is making his presence known. 

Chang bombed a game-tying two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth inning to ignite the Chinese Taipei's eventual 11-7 win over Italy. 

The Red Sox utility man finished the game going 2-for-4 with a double, the aforementioned home run and a walk. He logged two RBIs for his big blast and scored three times. 

Chang's impressive performance is far from indicative of his potential in Boston but it's certainly a positive. 

The one advantage Chang has over the other depth middle infielders that were available when he signed is youth. 

If Chang does become a diamond in the rough, he could impact the team in a similar fashion to Christian Arroyo -- another waiver-wire add who was designated for assignment before being brought back to make an impact. Arroyo's now considered the Red Sox's starting second baseman after years of contributions off the bench. 

For now, fans can be encouraged by Chang's early display of power in the WBC.

More MLB: Ex-Red Sox Shortstop Reportedly Signs With National League Suiter

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Scott Neville
SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer.  His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu

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